TS 1669 
.B81 
Copy 1 



TTIxE BOOK" SERIES. 



THE STOPt^S' 



SILK 



MBROIDERY 




THE "LITTLE BOOK" SERIES. 



THE STORV 



SILK -^ EMBROIDERY 

'' '■ / Compliments of — „. - 

/ 

THE BRAINERD & ARMSTRONG CO, 

NEW YORK, PHILADELPHIA, 

No. -169 B E O A 1) W A Y . "J 1 31 A K K E T S T K K E T . 



BOSTON, BALTIMORE, 

5 Kingston Stkeet. 5 Hanover Street. 



CoPYKKiHT 1888, AND PUBLISHED BY 

CHABXES CHAMBERLAIN, THOMAb DANIELS, 

13 P.UIK Row, New Yoek. 



/WARDED THE MEDAL OF SUPERIORITY 

Over nil other makes at the _^ 

AMERICAN INSTITUTE, 1885-1887. 



BRAINERD & ARMSTRONG'S 

U^tfading Asiatic Dyes^ 

ENDORSED AND USED B V THE 

SOCIETY OF DECORATIVE ART, NEW YORK, 

THE ASSOCIATED ARTISTS, NEW YORK', 

AND RECOGNIZED AUTHORITIES 

IN ART NEEDLEWORK 

EVERYWHERE. 



t~^(o(jO(r. 



Brainerd & Armstrong Co,, 

EXCLUSIVE DYERS OF SILK 

TO THE ASSOCIATED ARTISTS, NEW YORK. 

NEW FORK. PHILADELPHm. 

BOSTON. BALTIMORE, 



Only a Silken Thread, 

Slight, ytt stroug ; and with its origin dating so 
far in the j)ast' that the story of silk and 'its man- 
ufacture is, by the best historians, obscure and 
unsatisfactorj^. For silk, as for many other important 
discoveries which we now enjoy in their development 
and perfection, we are indebted to the Chinese. Our in- 
debtedness to the Celestial Empire is heavy. Art owes 
its gratitude in many ways. Science finds some of its 
most vahted attiiinments having their inception with tbe 
Chinese. Shut in behind the grea". walls of their cities, 
their people are, and alwavs have been workers, in their 
own way, self-sealed against intrusion, and jet giving 
out, occa«ionallj^, something of importance, while 
Chinese history, which began thousands of years ago, was 
making itself and the knowledge of tliis vast empire, 
second in its area only to Riassia, was hidden in 
uncertainty, if not in mystery. A peciiliar people, 
bavingjan individual existence that has made itself felt 
everywhere, the Chinese are the god-parents to ideas 
and inventions which others have eagerly caught and 
improved upon. 

About 2,000 B. C, from the cocoon of the silk worm 
the wife of the Chinese Emperor is said to have unwound 
the silk, found its usefulness, and imparted the discoverj^ 
to the imperial household. That unwinding of the thread 
from that cocoon 'was more to the civilized world than 
ever that Chinese Empress dreamed of ! And that little 
worm, building its cocoon ho ase about itself, became 
more important to the world than any other crawling 



fhiug that ever entered into the lists of the naturalists, 
with the Latin names of family to put it in place as 
cou&in direct to tbe moth and cousin-german to one of 
the greatest articles of commerce which the unborn gener- 
ations were to appreciate. 

The Silken Thread Spanning- the World 
is no misnomer. From China the product of the silk- 
worm found its way into the Eastern countries as a 
revelation, and in the Bible lands the Avorkers in silk 
bec.ime famoas, while the posses iion of fabrics made of 
it was esteemed a mark of distinction and luxury. We 
find this estimate recorded an Ezekiel, 16, 10-13, in the 
words : 

"I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod 
thee with badger's skin ; and I ;;;iidetl thee aboiit with 
fine linen, and I covered thee with silk 

"Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver, and thy 
raiment was line linen and silk embroidered work." 

In Eome (A.D. 180), the value of a pound of silk was 
equal to a pound of gold, and by a singular dispensation 
of ethics or propriety of dress, the wearing of a silk gar- 
ment was considered as an ornament to a woman. The 
man who wore it was disgraced. 

Aristotle alhides to the silken fabrics, the material 
used for the weaving having been imported from China ; 
and under the reign of tbe Byzantine Enji^eror Justinian 
(A.D. 5^7-565), silk manufactures nourished, much of 
the Aveaving being done over fr..mes of hard wood or 
bone. The silkAvorm eggs and cocoons were brought 
into Constantinople by Persian monks, Avho concealed 
their treasure from the confiding Chinese. And Ave are 
told so much Avas silk appreciated that, under the 



patronage of the ralers, the best workers were employed, 
and Argos, Corinth, and Thebes became centres of the 
industry, the Greeks emploj'ing crude and laborious 
methods, the silk being brought from China. 

The ancient Egyptians were progressive, and by them 
also was silk made important. Fabrics of various bril- 
liant colors were woven from silk, and the embroidery 
upon thess was elaborate and beautiful . There is no 
record of silkworm culture in Egypt . They were satis- 
fied to draw their suppUes also from the Celestials— nor 
were these latter ungenerous in giving it. 

Silk found its way into Italy in 1147, by the 
capture of prisoners from the Greek cities, 
the captives being skilled in the art of manu- 
facture ; uhder the mastership of Eoger, King of Sicily, 
the first eftorts were made at Palermo, from which silk- 
making spread to Florence, Milan and Venice. 

Spain had its silk works at Granada, under the Moors ; 
and in 1564:, after nearly forty years of exf)eriment, silk 
manufacture took root in southern France, where also 
the cultivation of the white mulberry and the raising of 
silkworms was successfully encouraged. This was a 
great booQ to England. The denmnds of the Britons for 
the costly fabric, and the material for their embroidery 
had been previously met by importations from China and 
Italy, with which, aided by the English patronage, France 
soon established herself as a comi^etitor . 

England came to the front 

in silk manufacture under the reign of James I, but 
under many disadvantages, the prodiictions of the French 
being so highly estimated that the efforts of the King 



were not enthusiastically received. Silli-working was 
not, however, totally disregarded, and under James II, 
in 1685, a factory was established at Spitalfields under 
the management of a number of French exiles, who car- 
ried the industry to such perfection tbat the Spitalftelds 
silks were regarded as equal to those made in Italy. 
To James I. is to be credited the introduction of 
Silkworm Culture in America, 
the first English settlement liaviog been made at James- 
town, Virginia, in 1607, and soon after eggs, im- 
ported into England from China, and mulberry trees 
also were sent over to the ^colonists, with promises of 
large rewards by James for the advancement of the cul- 
ture. The King was a liberal monarch, and he saw a 
means of profit, both to the new country and the old, in 
maintaining an industry which had made its mark upon 
the Continental commerce. The experiment ended, like 
many others of old times and of the present, not meta- 
phorically, but actually, in smoke. The Indians in 
America had, for no one really knew how lojig, culti- 
vated tobacco -and the small colony of Europeans in 
Virginia found a source of revenue ready at hand, in a 
locality well adapted for its snccessfnl prosecution. This 
industry, for the advancement of which there was abun- 
dant incentive in the demands for the "weed" in the 
old country, swamped the silkworm enterprise and King 
James found the result of his Virginia experiment so un- 
satisfactory that the Avorm and the business soon came to 
grief. 

Louisiana had its experience in 1718, but without any 
lasting success. Grants were made to settlers in 
Georgia, for the purpose of cultivating mulberry trees, 



breeding the worms and producing and working tlie 
silk. This had the advantage of skilled artisans from 
Europe, a company of silk manufacturers having been 
sent over in 1732. For two years every attention was 
paid to silk, and the exportation to England of a few 
pounds of raw material was the result. Fifteen years 
later, during which time the best efforts were made at a 
German settlement on the Savannah river, a thousand 
pounds were shipped, the silk being so carefully reeled 
that the highest price was obtained for it on the London 
market. Encouraged by this, two years later, a filature 
was established at Savannah, to which all silk-culturists 
were permitted to send their cocoons. 

Thus tbe silk industiy grew, rapidly and honestly, 
till a reduction of price for American silk was decreed 
by the English Parliament, and the encouragement being 
withdrawn, the Georgia workers became apathetic iu 
1770, and the Revolution was a death-blow to the trade 
at that time. 

South Carolina had its share in silk culture by Swiss 
settlers, who were moderately siiccessful. i ennsyl- 
vania had a lilature at Philadelphia in 1770. when the 
reduction in price was made in England, and there had 
also been established at Mansfield, Connecticut, a wtll 
appointed factory. This, as well as those in the South- 
ern States, lost its identity when the Kevolution came. 
Massachusetts shared the same fate, where, as in Con- 
necticut, the silk manufacture was making rapid prog- 
ress. Stockings, buttons, ribbon?, 'kerchiefs, and sew- 
ing silk were made by the New England workers, and so 
good were quality and workmanship that the French 
productions were regarded as second to the American 



8 

What the indnetry has become in the United States the 
big figures of the statistics easityshow. Nearlj^ all the 
Middle States have their silk factories ; the Pacific coast 
has its large establishments in California, and New 
England boldly competes with the finest i^'oductions 
from France and England. Improvements in ma- 
chinery -a thorough knowledge of the best methods and 
a steady growth of the trade itself demonstrate how 
much has followed that unwinding of the silk by the 
Chinese Empress, over 3,000 years ago. 

Italy, France, and Spain rank in the order of mention 
as silk producing countries, and Asia doubles the 
Italian figures in pounds and vahie. 

The Process of Dyeing- 
starts from an early age, from the simplest methods in 
positive colors. The Tyrians were noted for proficiency 
in the art, and a peculiar purple hue won for them dis- 
tinction which made others envious. This color was 
derived from a shel!-flsh found in the Mediterranean, on 
the coast of Phoenicia. The Romans used the dye exten- 
sively and by an imperial edict it was restricted to the 
nobility. Natural dyes, of fine color, obtained from 
vp -ious woods, were known in Peru and Mexico in their 
earliest history; and brilliant colors were also familiar 
to the Indians of North America. 

The use of vegetable dj^es has been most extensive ; 
and before the introdiiction of coal tar or aniline dyes, 
the methods employed for all fabrics were tedious and 
expensive. The discovery of aniline was made in 1826, 
during the process of distilling indigo ; and in 1856, while 
experimenting with aniline, the purple color known as 



10 

Again the Bible, in Exodus, 28, 39 : 

" And thou shalt embroider the coat of fine linen ; and 
thou shalt make the mitre of fine hnen, and thou shalt 
make the girdle of needle-work." 

The mind easily sways itself toward a desire for decora- 
tion and embellishment. Nature sets an example in 
gorgeousness and variety of color in the fields about us; 
and under the burning sun of the tropics the vegetation 
becomes bewildering in its brilliancy. Thus is heaxitj 
sjaread by an iinseen hand, with a concordance, each 
■wath the other, in color and formation. 

There is no art in what is thus given to study and to 
imitate. But there is art in the perisetuation by means 
which accomplish the end, that the imitation shall be 
perfect and the resiilt recognizable, long after the origi- 
nal shall have disappeared. 

Since there has been any record— long ago when the 
world was centuries younger — when the undiscovered 
was j'^et to come, and when the nations of the earth were 
tribes, and these tribes wanderers, there Avas a desire for 
decoration. It was crude embellishment, at best, serving 
a purpose of distinction, if nothing more, and with litlle 
comprehension of fitness. 

Time cut his swath in the pathway to eternity un- 
tiringly and unerringly ; and as the people advanced 
in might and increased in numbers, embroidery became 
pastime and a source of profit. As a delicate art, as a 
tracery of the imagination, or as a means of close 
imitation, it fell into the kinds of women — perhaps 
then, as now, as a fitness of the means to the end, since, 
from the day of Adam, the Avoman's influence and the 
woman's skill has, in the finer sense, predominated. 



mauve was intiodiiced. Since that time the introduction 
and iise of aniline as a dj^e of commerce has been very 
large, bttt the aniline colors, notably on silk, have been 
unsatisfactory, being unable to withstand exposure to 
light, and being hub transient when subjected to the 
test of washing. All dyers have striven to secure a 
greater permanency of color, to find some means by 
which the effect of light and washing might be coun- 
teracted, and experiments which have cost large sums 
have been repeatedly made. 

THK BKAINEKD & AKMSTEONG COMPANY, 

at their immense mills in New London, Conn., have for 
several years emialoycd the most sldlful d_yers to accom- 
plish the result of brilliant and lasting color, and with- 
out the reliance on methods depending on the use of 
aniline. In tbis they have been successful. The colors 
of the silks are permanent, unfading in the light and 
standing the test of washing, without injury to thread or 
fabric . 

In a brief acknowledgment, the dyers of to-day must 
go back to improvements on the work of the East Indian 
countries. 

The Present must take Its lessons from the Past, and in 
doing so advancement in the art is but the splendid 
illustration to the methods of older times, made more 
valuable under the skill of modern students of color and 
the means of rendering it unfading. 

The Art of Embroidery- 
is entitled to more than ordinary respect, since its age 
gives it a patriarchal right to recognition and importance. 



ii 

While men were husbandmen, or warriors, or artisans 
wielding the heavy tools of labor, women foiind em- 
ployment with the needle. Among the uncivilized, bone 
and ivory were used ; and with the more refined nations, 
such as the Chinese, Egyptians, Aysyrians, Hindoos and 
Hebrews, needles were in use, some made of bronze 
being foiind in the Egyptian tombs. 

And these needles must have been made 4,000 years 
ago 

What the needle may accompli«h, with a practiced 
hand to guide it, was not then limited, is not now, and 
never will be. 

In earliest times the Egyptians were embroiderers. 
Scenes and incidents in the lives of the rulers were 
perpetuated by needlework, much of it done by slaves, 
under the direction of the most rigid task-masters, and 
after China had given the silk it bec.ime the material by 
which embroidery of the finest kind was made durable . 

So great was the love of embroidery as a decoration 
that the sails on the galleys were worked, and when 
Cleopatra reclined in state i^iaon her couch of skins, and 
the gem-studded oars of her barge touched the waters of 
the Nile, the silken sail which spread above her was 
elegantly wrought ia embroidery to attract a Cfesar, or to 
hold in its shadow an Antony, hidden from all except 
the dusky Queen who played with men and armies as her 
own. Egyptian women were noted for their skill with 
the needle, and with them, as with the people of Baby- 
lon and Tyre, precious metals, beaten into threads, were 
used with silk in making their mementoes and their 
decorative banners . Metals were also much lised by the 
Hindoos and the Chinese in their most effective repro- 



auctions npon silk, althougli the necessary limit in colors 
robbed their labor of its advantage as a faithful pict -.re. 

Persia was noted for its embroiderj^ in scarfs, banners, 
and carpets— much of the work done by women, the 
former being eagerly sought after by otheir nationalities. 
Nature furnished the patterns for the dieft fingers and 
busy needles of the Persian women, a great deal bf ing 
done in the harems, and afterward sold for the 1 enefitof 
the grandees. The Avork was peculiar in color and de- 
sign, most of it done in silk, with a very few instances 
where figures of persons or animals were depicted, and 
not many attempts at historical representation. 

Decoration, with the Moors, ran to a great extent— so 
much that every conceivable means was taken to 
excel. The trappings of the horses, the banners carried 
in their processions, the flags attached to the spears of 
the hard-riding warriors, the tapestries hung in the 
apartments of the rulers, the tents used in the field, 
were all embroidered expensively and with the utmos'-, 
care. The execution of a single piece not anfrequently 
occupied the embroiderer for months. In Rome, the 
embroidery upon jarizes given to victors in contests or 
in games was elaborate, and in Greece the same custom 
was observed . During the wars of the crusaders, and in 
the tournaments, in which lives Avere sacrificed to gain a 
prize, embroidered scarfs and banners were in vogue. 

Here, indeed, was woman's work— at a value. And 
woman's work Avas beautiful, Avhen she earnestly under- 
took the execution . The Middle Ages were noted for 
proficiency and varietj' in embroidery, its importance 
placing it in competition Avith painting. There were 
schools for teaching it ; and no feudal castle was 



13 

complete -without its seclaJed apartment, whicli -was a 
•workshop for the embroiderers, in -which silk was 
principally used. 

Tapestry, intended to perpetuate historical incidents 
■was a trade, as miich as an accomplishment, and all the 
ingenuity and skill to be obtained were emploj'ed to 
make these tapestries of great value and importance . 
Years were sometimes necessary to complete a subject; 
and the famous specimens which are now treasured in 
the museums or remain in the old castles as reminders 
of the feudal times are marvels of skill and monuments 
of perseverance, although some are sadly deficient in 
the proper arrangement of color, even when the materials 
were capable of much more generous and effective use. 

Modern Embroidery- 
has both value and charm. During tbe past century 
there has been a steady advancement in methods and 
precision of work. As the better material has been 
given, so the character and quality of the work has in- 
creased. The Queen and waiting-women found amuse- 
ment with the embroidery frame ; their ready needles 
gave much of worth and beauty, and while that is 
preserved for its historical importance and its value 
enhances with its age, and while heir-looms, not from 
the Queen or her hand-maiden?, tire scattered as relics 
in all countries, woman's imagination and woman's 
work appreciates, by constant use, the means provided 
for her willing hands . 

No longer, as in the novelists' pet period, does the fair 
lady from within the deep recesses of her tower-room 
in some old pile of stone, work thoughts and wishes for 
her absent lover on the 'broidered scarf, awaiting his 



14 

return from tournament or skirmish. And yet the fair 
lady of to-day is never lonesome when her needle 
and her assortment of "silken threads " can be employed. 

Embroidery has in one sense descended in the scale 
to an article of commerce. Persia sends its Avork for 
sale ; China excels in delicacy and exactness if not in the 
proper porj)ortions of the objects represented— impossi- 
ble figures are made ; and yet the beauty of execution and 
the inimitable arrangement of incongruous designs are 
acceptable, in adding value to the production. As the 
earliest known workers in silk, this proficiency need not 
be wondered at; and the specimens of embroidery con- 
tinually reaching the American market from the Chinese 
workshops are hardly siisceptible of imitation, out of the 
Chinese empire. France sends its embroidery in many 
forms— delicate, beautiful, and of great value— so finely 
executed, so full of character and so radiant in repro- 
ductive color, that it holds i's place firmly and deservedly 
in estimation. 

The Scope of Needlework 
admits of no limitation. It is a bread-winner when 
necessary, an amusement always. No lady, with any 
inventive genius, or any application of her ability to do 
work as well as another need hesitate, with the modern 
appliances for doing the work, and the variety of 
material to be had at moderate cost, to undertake em- 
broidery and doiibt success. 

To do good work, to give it the permanency it 
deserves, good materials must be used. There is no 
longer the excuse that they are unobtainable, or that the 
cost precludes their iTse. 



16 



"The Highest Authorities 
Unanimously Endorse 

Brainerd &. Armstrong's 

Unfading Asiatic Dyes." 

KQPE SILK, a large, loosely twisted thread, is a 
"Wash Silk," and is produced in all the colorings of 
Brainerd &. Armstrong's Unfading Asiatic Dj'es. 

ROPE SILK has, since its introduction a few months 
ago, led all other Silks in the estimation of art needle- 
workers, who have instantlj' recognized its value in pro- 
ducing wonderfully novel, bold, and yet entirely artistic 
effects iipon all the heavier fabrics now in use. 

In versatility as to stitches and in rapidity of execu- 
tion (two very attractive qualities to the embroideress), 
ROPE SILK is without a parallel. 

As in the production of Brainerd & Armstrong's "Out- 
line Embroidery," "Filo," "Twisted Embroiderj'," and 
"Filling Silks," WORTHLESS IMITATIONS of ROPE 
SILK have already apjDeared in the market, 

^^^ SEE THAT EVERY SKEIN BEARS THE NAME OF THE 
BRAINERD & ARMSTRONG CO., AND THE TRADE MARK, 
"ASIATIC DYES." 

No OTHER IS GENUINE. 



15 

Articles of apparel, of great variety of design and 
quality, appeal to the skill of the embroiderer ; the house- 
ho'd asks decoration, and it can be made attractive in 
ianiimerable ways, simply by the employment of the 
needle and the nse of silk, on every known woven 
fabric. The screen which partly shuts from view the 
blazing logs or the dying embers; the portiere which 
guards the entrance to the drawing-room or boudoir; the 
pilloAV which invites a moment's rest and from within its 
silken cover offers the sweet odor of the forest pine; the 
silk embroidered cloths for the table -in fac', everything 
within the "house beautiful " for use or ornament, invites 
the needle, affording amusement for the leisure hour, 
while the work will seldom fail in good compari- 
son with that which comes to us from far-off lands 
and workers whom we hear of, read of, but never see. 

Within the past few years our Decorative Art Associ- 
ations have furnished much to study. They are the out- 
growth of the plentitude of woman's work, her sceptre 
the needle; and encouragement in this is their support 
and her advantage . Eefinement of taste in design and 
color are apparent. Advancement in skill comes easily, 
and the result of all is enduring and ]irofitable. 

The artist brings to his canvas the imitation of nature's 
colors Avith his brush ; but the skilful needle-woman, 
aided by the manufacturer, who gives every primal 
color and its graduated shades in the silk which the 
needle places in the picture, can so closely follow the 
pigments mixed upon the palette, from color to tiut, 
that the painting and the embroidery deserve equal 
prominence. 



17 

SHAKESPEREAK 



SUCCESSFUL LOVER COMPARED TO A CONQUEEOE. 

Like one of two contending in a prize, 
That thinks lie has don^i well m people's eyes, 
Hearing applause and universal shout, 
Giddy in spirit, still gazing, in a doubt, 
Whether those peals of praise be his or not ; 
So, thrice fair lady, stand I. 

—Merchant of Venice. 

love's powek. 
Things base and vile, holding no quantity, 
Love can transpose to favor and dignity, 
Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind. 
And therefore i? winged Cupid painted blind. 

— A Midsummer iSight's Dream. 

HOW TO WIN HEE. 

Win her with gifts, if she respect not words ; 

Dumb jewels often, in their silent kind. 

More than quick words, do move a woman's mind. 

— Tioo Genilemen of Verona . 

INNOCENCE. 

Innocence shall make 

False accusation blush, and tyranny 

Tremble at patience. 

— Winter's Tale. 

GEIEE. 

Each substance of a grief hath twenty shadows, 
Which show, like grief itself, but are not so ; 
For sorrow's eye, glazed with blinding tears, 
Divides one t^ ing entire to many objects ; 
Like perspectives, which rightly gazed upon, 
Show nothing but confusion, ey'd awry. 
Distinguish form . 

— King Eichard II. 



18 

EMERGENCY. 

He that stands uiDon a slippery place, 
Makes nice of no vile hold to stay him up. 

— King John . 
man's inconstancy. 
heaven ! were man 

But constant, he were perfect ! that one error 
Fills him with faults . 

— Winter's Tale. 

A DISDAINFUL WOMAN. 

Disdain and scorn ride sparkling in her eyes, 
Misprising what they look on ; and her wit 
Values itself so highly, that to her 
All matter else seems weak ; she cannot love, 
Nor take no shape nor project of affection, 
She is feo self -endeared. 

— Much Ado About Nothing. 
Hope to joy is little less in joy 
Than hope enjoyed. 

— Richaid II, 
Do not satisfy your resolution with hopes that are 
fallible. 



—Pleasure for Ji 
At seventeen years many their fortunes seek, 
But at fourscore it is too late a week. 

— As You Like It . 
Beauty doth varnish age, as if new-born. 
And gives the crutch the cradle's infancy. 

—Love's Labor's Lost. 
There is no slander in an allowed fool, though he do 
nothing but rail. 

—Twelfth Night. 
A little fire is quickly trodden out. 

—Henry VI. 

Light boats sail swift, though greater hulks draw deep. 
— Troilus and Cn 



19 

Mere honor is my life, both gi-ow in one ; 
Take honor from rue, and my life is clone. 

— Eiclmrd 11. 
Justice always whirls in equ^l measure 

— Love's Labor's Lost. 
Ill blows the wind that profits nobodj" . 

—Henry VI. 
Come what may, 
Time and the hour runs through the roughest dav. 

—31icbdh. 
Pleasure and action make the hours seem short. 

— 01 hello. 

The honor of a maid is her name ; and no legacy is so 

rich as honefity. —All's Well Thai End's Well. 

The course of true love never did run smooth. 

— Midsummer Kighl's Dnum. 
Society is no comfort 
To one not sociable. 

— Cymhelhii: . 
Love sought is good, but given unsought is better. 

--TaelflhKiijlil. 
tiove thyself last : cherish those hearts that hate thee. 

—Henry Vlll. 
Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs 

— Romeo and Juliet. 
Love all, trust a few, 
Do wrong to none : be able for thine enemj'. 

—All's Well that Ends Well. 
Love is blind, and lovers cannot see 
The pretty follies that themselves commit. 

— Merchant of Venice . 
More are men's ends marked than their lives before. 

—Richard II. 
Methinks the truth should live from age to age, 
As 't were retailed to all posterity. 

—Richard 111. 



He lives in fame that died in virtue's cause. 

— Tikis Andromcus. 
All that lives must die, 
Passing through nature to eternity. 

— Hamlet . 
Live a little ; comfort a little ; cheer thyself a little. 

— As You Like It . 
Mend your speech a little, 
Lest it may mar your future . 

— King Lear. 
She puts her tongue a little in her heart. 
And chides with thinking. 

—Othello. 
Gives not the hawthorn bush a sweeter shade, 
To sheiDherds, lookiug on their silly sheep. 
Than doth a rich embroider 'd canopy. 
To kings, that fear their subjects' treachery. 

- Ill King ±ienry VI. 

Gems for the Months. 

The superstition which has attached to precious stones 
and the. wearin>< of them has lasted for so long a time, 
that tlie present generation's people may feel inclined to 
give credence to their imputed influence, and the list, 
&'i accepted by traditionary authorities, is : 

January -Garnet. July- Enby. 

February — Amethyst . August — Sardonyx . 

March— Bloodstone. September— Sapphire . 

April— Diamond. October— Opal . 

May— Emerald . November— Topaz . 

June — Agate. December- -Turquoise. 

Don't Do It. 
Don't brood o'er care — the trouble that you make 
Is always worse to bear, and hard to shake : 
Smile at the world ; the sorrow that is sent. 
'J'ake it, with patience, as your punishment. 
He wins who laughs. 




This cut represents our neiv and im- 
proved method' of putting lop Embroidery 
Silk. 

This Silh is guaranteed' to possess the 
follozvin^ 

^MERITS* . 

1st. — Even and. Artistic Siiading. 
2d. — Smooth, Lustrous Thread, 
3d.— Improved Methods of putting up. 

Each (iitill contains about 3 yards or a 
trifl'-i more than the ordinary shein. 

The /Silk is better than skeins. 
In short, it is 

THE BEST SILK IN THE BEST FORM. 



WORTH REMEMBERING. 



Conversation is the music of the mind . 

No men despise physic so much as physicians . 

He that thinks himself the hajjpiest man really is so. 

Many who find the day too long, think life too short. 

Great men, like comets, are eccentric in their courses. 

Eats and conquerors must expect no mercy in mis- 
fortune . 

A fool may ask more questions than a wise man can 
answer. 

He that thinks himself the wisest is generally the 
greatest fool . 

Relations take the greatest liberties and give the least 
assistance . 

When we fail, our pride supports us, when we succeed, 
it betrays us. 

To know a man, observe how he iinns his object, rather 
than how he loses it. 

Those that are loudest in their threats, are the weakest 
in the execution of them . 

A necessitous man, who gives costly dinners, pays large 
sums to be laughed at. 

Deliberate with caution; act with decision ; yield with 
graciousness ; oppose with firmness. 

Be not too niggardly in praise, for a man will do more 
to support a character than to raise one . 

To sentence a man of true genius to the drudgery of a 
school, is to put a race horse in a mill. 

Logic is a large drawer, containing some useful instru- 
ments, and many more that are superfluous. 

It is always safe to learn, even from our enemies— sel- 
dom safe to venture to instruct, even our friends . 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

illlllllllillilili 

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